Football, Tailgate, Brotherhood
Having graduated in 1984 and being part of Coach Stuart’s first Varsity Football Team, I have attended all but one of the Belen /Columbus football games and of course the famous tailgate parties.
The sense of community one experiences when participating in this event is profound. The eternal brotherhood felt between alumni, students, faculty and family /friends is overwhelming.
This event also brings together two well-respected and accomplished All-Boy Catholic Schools, to not only compete on the football field, but to come together as one. I also have a sense of pride having seen the football program evolve since 1984. When the first game was played 33 years ago, I remember going only with my classmates. As the years have passed, it has truly become a family event which I now attend with my wife, son (Belen Class of 2020) and my daughter who cheers for the “other” team – still a very sore subject in my household.
One of the things I cherish most about the tailgate is walking around and seeing members of the Belen Family -- whether classmates, former teachers, faculty, administrators and genuinely exchanging a hug and/or greeting. One can truly feel that sense of “family”. Recently, the tailgate has evolved from it being run only by alumni, to incorporating the football parents and making it into an even larger festive environment.
Regardless of what happens on the field the tailgate is, as we like to say, undefeated. Seeing old friends, tossing around the football, telling stories of the “glory days” and eating good food are just some of the hallmarks that make this one of the best annual traditions at Belen. We are all one family and I am blessed to be part of it.
Belen will always hold a special place in my heart and I owe much of who I am today to the Catholic education and formation I received at Belen; for that I will be eternally grateful. Go Wolverines!
Click here to view the photo album.
Click here to view the photo album.
BELEN JESUIT PREPARATORY SCHOOL
500 SW 127th Avenue, Miami, FL 33184
phone: 305.223.8600 | fax: 305.227.2565 | email: webmaster@belenjesuit.org
500 SW 127th Avenue, Miami, FL 33184
phone: 305.223.8600 | fax: 305.227.2565 | email: webmaster@belenjesuit.org
Belen Jesuit Preparatory School was founded in 1854 in Havana, Cuba by Queen Isabel II of Spain. The task of educating students was assigned to the priests and brothers of the Society of Jesus (the Jesuits), whose teaching tradition is synonymous with academic excellence and spiritual discipline. In 1961, the new political regime of Cuba confiscated the School property and expelled the Jesuit faculty. The School was re-established in Miami the same year, and over the next decade, continued to grow. Today, Belen Jesuit sits on a 30-acre site in western Dade County, only minutes away from downtown Miami.